Bitter Sweet
by BelowAverage
Summary: -Part One- She tried running, but it just came back to haunt her. So, now Caroline must decide. Is she going to keep running or team up with the Winchesters to try and solve this leviathan problem? (Sam Winchester story)
1. Bad Beginnings

**16 years ago Buffalo, New York**

_"NO! PLEASE, NO!" She cried out. The small girl cradled her mother's head in her arms as she sobbed. Blood got on her arms and pyjamas, but she didn't care. The hunt went wrong. The hunt went terribly wrong. Her parents came home drunk with another success. They thought they exterminated all the vamps in the nest in the next state over, but they miscalculated. The last vamp followed them all the way home and didn't stop at just tearing their throats out. It tore out their son's and two older daughters' that were visiting from college. It would have finished off the youngest, ten year old Caroline, but she was quick with the machete her parents kept in their closet amongst other weapons._

_The small girl struggled to hold back her sobs. She could hear her mother's voice in her head. "If anything happens the first thing you do, before panicking or crying, the very first thing you do is call Auntie Rose and tell her what happened, okay? She'll get you and your brother out of here." She had failed terribly. She panicked, then sobbed, and now she's working her way to the phone. She dialled the number. It only took a ring and a half for her aunt to pick up._

_ "Hello?" A tired voice said. "Th-they're d-dead! They're all dead!" She cried into the phone. "Cara, keep calm, okay? I'm on my way," the familiar voice was alert now and she could hear the sound of running in the background. "What was it?" Her aunt asked urgently. "V-vampire. It got them all! I got it before it could get me though," she explained through a sob. "You're amazing, Cara, you know that? When I was ten I was playing paper barbies with your mom in dirty motel rooms and you killed a vampire all by yourself!" Her aunt exclaimed proudly. Cara had no idea how she could be so calm and uncaring just after hearing her sister, brother in law, nieces, and nephew were murdered._

_"I'll be there in twenty minutes. Stay on the phone with me? Okay?"_

_"Okay"_

**Present Day somewhere near Sioux Falls, South Dakota **

Tired didn't describe how Caroline felt at the moment. She's been walking around for two months looking for a place to stay. It's been days since she's gotten any form of proper rest and weeks since she's seen a bed. Her stomach ached with hunger. Dehydration wouldn't be a problem after this storm she's been walking through. A loud clap of thunder made her jump. She was too tired to be expecting the thunder to continue happening, even during a thunderstorm. She sighed and hiked the straps of her book bag higher up on her shoulders.

She looked up at the clouded night sky as she kept walking, squinting her eyes at the rain. Her mother always talked about God. She said that he would be there to help you out in your darkest hours if you had faith. Well, she figured she had enough faith after everything she's been through so where is he? Where does he get off her ruining her life like he did? _Well, he is God_, she thought, _but it still isn't right_. Her frustration and tiredness built up inside her. "WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU NOW YOU BASTARD?" she screamed at the sky not being able to contain her anger. She sighed, shook her head, and kept walking. "Excuse me!" A voice called from behind her. Caroline froze instantly. Slowly, she turned around the face the owner of the voice, two bright lights nearly blinding her.

There were two men standing on either side of a black car, obviously a classic. The taller of the two stood on the passenger's side and the other on the driver's. She couldn't make out their faces in the dark and rain. "Yes," she answered finally. "Are you okay? Do you need a ride somewhere?" one of them asked, she couldn't tell which one. She couldn't hold her eyelids open anymore. "Nowhere to go," she managed to get out before passing out right there.

* * *

When she began to wake up Caroline could hear voices talking. They were definitely within ten feet of her. She kept her eyes closed and pretended she was still asleep. "What the hell are we supposed to do with her, Bobby?" A voice hissed. "She could be a demon or a freaking leviathan for all we know!" the same voice continued. "Look, we can do all the tests when she wakes up, okay? But you are _not _leaving her here while you two go off trying to get yourselves killed!" another voice spoke with a fatherly like authority to the other. "And why not?" the first voice challenged. "Because how is it going to look to some poor innocent girl when she wakes up in a strange house with some weird old coot god knows where!" the second voice whisper-yelled back.

"Bobby has a point, Dean," a new voice spoke up. It was softer than the other two, but they were all men. "We found her, it's only right we stick around to make sure she's okay," the third voice finished. Caroline could feel the panic rising up, but she kept it at bay. There was a moment of tension filled silence then a sigh. "Fine, but once we make sure she's okay and not something freaky she's all yours," the first voice said. Caroline took this as her cue to fake wake up. She shifted a bit at first before allowing her eyes to flutter open. Sunlight streamed through the window above her. She squeezed her eyes shut then opened them again to help get them adjusted. She sat up slowly and stretched, pretending to be unaware of her company. She looked over to see three sets of eyes watching her, in height order funnily enough.

"Uh, hi."


	2. Sunshine

Caroline took note of the rather lumpy bed she was on. "Hi," the tallest man said unsurely, she recognized his voice as the third. His brown hair reached his shoulders and his green eyes where filled with concern. Caroline had always wanted green eyes to replace her blue ones. There was an awkward silence. "Okay, if you're going to kill me and bury me in your basement or something can you at least get me something to eat because I'm starving and dying on an empty stomach isn't a way I want to go," Caroline blurted out to the three strange men. "Dean, go heat her up some left overs," the second voice, an older man with a beard and hat, ordered the remaining man. "Why me?" The last man and first voice asked irritated. His hair was short and spiked in the front; he looked at her with cold olive coloured eyes.

The bearded man, Bobby she realized, gave Dean a meaningful look and Dean rolled his eyes and did as he was told. Caroline brought her knees up to her chest and hugged them, her clothes now dry. She looked around the room. It was a maroon colour with a golden pattern. Books were scattered everywhere and a desk pushed in front of a fireplace. "So, uh, what's your name?" the owner of the third voice asked. "Caroline Martin, but everyone called me Cara," she answered quietly. "I'm Sam Winchester, the guy with the attitude is my brother, Dean, and this is our friend Bobby," he told her with a kind smile. Sam and Dean seemed to be polar opposites; she definitely didn't want to be invited to those Christmas dinners. Dean came back in and handed her a flask. She took it and quickly gulped it all down, it was water. When she looked up she noticed the three men watching her intently and blushed.

That's when she realized it. She's given and received those intense looks many times when unsure of someone's species. She's seen many people use flasks with crosses on them like the one she held in her hands now. She just drank holy water. Her eyes flickered around the room quickly: silver knife on the desk, devil's trap on the ceiling, and a whole bunch of old lore books. She felt as if months of hard work pushing everything about this life as far away from her as possible had just been shattered. "I take it you guys are hunters then," she said. They all looked surprised by her deduction. "Uh, yeah, how'd you know?" Sam asked confused. "Well, I did just drink holy water, there's a devil's trap on the ceiling, and, last I checked, normal people don't have old satanic books lying around their house. Not out in the open anyways," she pointed everything out.

"I guess she's got a point there," Bobby muttered as he looked around the mess of a room. "I'm not a demon or anything," Cara assured them. "Oh, yeah? How can we be so sure?" Dean challenged. "Well, Sunshine, give me a silver knife and some cleaner so we can just settle this," she retorted. Dean's attitude was really starting to get on her nerves. She had almost forgotten how hunters could be such dicks. "You did not just call me Sunshine," Dean replied as if he were trying really hard to hold back his annoyance, something that was not working very well. "Oh, I believe I just did," Cara countered. Sam watched the two amused.

"Oh, will you two shut up. You're giving me a headache!" Bobby interrupted the two's bickering. Bobby grabbed the knife off of the desk and handed it to her. She made a cut on her forearm to prove she wasn't a shapeshifter or werewolf. Then Bobby handed her an angel blade and she gave herself another small cut. She gave Dean a look that said "I told you so." Although he seemed a bit relieved, Dean looked even more annoyed. How such contradicting emotions could show on one face sort of amazed Cara. Bobby gave her a napkin and she kept pressure on the cuts she made with the knife to stop the bleeding. "Okay, then why the hell were you walking alone on a back road in the middle of the night during a thunderstorm?" Dean demanded. Suddenly Cara remembered the only thing she's had with her since she began running. It was basically attached to her back how had she forgotten about it?

"My bag, where's my bag?" Cara panicked and began searching through the mess. "Here," Sam said, pulling her from her almost anxiety attack. He handed her the worn down black book bag and she sighed in relief. "Thank you," she said as she took the bag. She quickly opened it to make sure the contents were still there. She didn't have much, just an extra change of clothes, a knife, her wallet, and a book that held her whole life. She looked back up relieved only to see them all looking at her again, obviously still expecting an answer to Dean's question. "I was running, okay? I have been for a while and I should get going now," she divulged.

"Running from what?" Sam asked this time. He actually seemed genuinely concerned. "This," she said and gestured to them. "You were running from us?" Dean questioned sounding slightly offended by the thought. Cara rolled her eyes. "Don't flatter yourself, Sunshine. I meant hunting," she explained. "Do not call me Sunshine," Dean ordered, but Cara ignored him. "Why are you running from hunting?" Sam asked, everyone just seemed to be ignoring Dean. "I just want to be normal. I don't want to have everyone I know dying every time I turn around." She didn't know why she was admitting all this. It wasn't like it was much. She guessed it was probably because she hasn't talked to another hunter in so long.

"Looks like we found you a buddy, Sammy," Dean told him, a hint of bitterness to his voice. "Dean-" Same started. "Can we save the family drama for later when no one else is around to hear it," Bobby interrupted him. "You can crash here for tonight, if you want," Bobby told Cara. She nodded. "Thank you." The opportunity to sleep on a real bed was too good to pass down. Plus it was only one night, what could go wrong?


	3. As To Be Expected

Cara ate the leftover lasagne that Bobby had attempted the make last night. It was like eating burned rubber, but Cara didn't mind. She was just happy to be eating something. The boys were searching fervently through books for something unknown to Cara. She felt bad just sitting there eating and not helping with anything. So, when she was done, she washed her dish and the rest of the dishes that filled the sink. Helping them research was helping them hunt and she wasn't doing that.

Cara decided just the clean the rest of the kitchen since it could definitely use a good scrub. She used the sponge by the sink to begin to scrub down the counters. Cleaning helped her think. What was she going to do after this? Where was she going to go? She dreaded the thought of having to start walking again.

"Need any help?" a voice pulled her from Cara-land. She turned around to see Sam standing in the doorway of the kitchen. "Shouldn't you be helping them?" Cara asked as she continued to scrub the counter clean. "Honestly, I could really use something to get my mind off of all this Heaven and Hell stuff," he admitted. She noticed how tired and run down he looked and couldn't bring herself to let him do even more work. "I'm just about done anyways," she lied. "How about we go for a walk instead," she suggested, holding back her cringe at the word walk. "Sounds good," he agreed. She squeezed the water from the sponge and dried the counter then Sam led her from the house.

**—Dean—**

Dean was getting more and more frustrated the longer he looked at the pages of whatever book he moved onto now. None of them said anything about how to put Lucifer back in the box without endangering Sammy. He looked up to give his eyes some rest and saw Sam standing in the kitchen with Cara. What the hell was he doing? As he watched them talk something in him clicked. _Sammy has a crush._ "Hey, Bobby," Dean said quietly as he nudged Bobby's arm. "What?" Bobby asked, obviously annoyed either at the lack of information the books contained, Dean, or both. He watched as the two walked outside. "Ten bucks says they come back in with sex hair," Dean bet with a stupid grin. "Shut up and get reading," Bobby said. Dean's grin faltered then fell from his face as he looked back down at his book. "Ten bucks says Sam comes in looking more vulnerable than before because they just had one of his heart to hearts," Bobby added. Dean's grin returned. "Oh, you're on."

Sam and Cara wandered around the never ending yard of junked cars. There was something strangely beautiful about it to Cara. It was awkward. "So, any idea where you're going tomorrow?" Sam broke the silence. "Uh, no, not really, I figured I'd just start walking again," Cara said as she looked up at the clouds. She loved looking at the sky, day or night. "You should come with us," Sam blurted. Cara looked at him surprised. He didn't even know her. She didn't even know him. Not to mention Dean is a huge pain in the ass.

"I just mean, it's dangerous to be walking on your own and we could use as much help as we can get with this apocalypse thing," Sam elaborated quickly. "I-I-I," She stuttered unsure of what she wanted to say. "We don't know each other. Plus, I don't think Dean will be too happy about me just tagging along," She reasoned. By now they had stopped walking and stood facing each other. Tons of old broken down totaled cars towered over them in heaps. Sam looked disappointed and slightly embarrassed. Cara hated it. She didn't know why, but she didn't like it. He just didn't look right when he wasn't at least content to her. She wanted to rip her hair out and punch herself in the face because of what she was about to say.

"Okay," she agreed. "Really?" Sam asked surprised at her sudden change of heart. Cara sighed. "You don't have to, really," He assured her. She shook her head. "No, I think I do. Maybe it's about time I stopped running. My mom would kill me if she knew I stopped hunting." Cara chuckled lightly at the thought of her mother blowing her top then sighed sadly. "Where is she now? Your mom, I mean," Sam asked although he was pretty sure he already knew the answer. "She died when I was ten with the rest of my family," Cara told him with a hollow voice. Sam nodded in understanding. "My mom died when I was young too. I don't really remember her, but Dean does," he told her.

"I'm sorry."

"Me too."

They headed inside after that. Cara sat down and picked up and unopened book and began to help them research. Sam shot Dean and Bobby a questioning look when Dean pulled a ten out of his wallet and handed it to a smug looking Bobby. "So, when do we hit the road?" Cara asked deciding to get Dean's inevitable protest out of the way now. "I'm sorry, we?" Dean asked and closed his book. "You heard me, Sunshine, I'm coming with you guys," She told him. He looked at her as if trying to figure out if she were joking and obviously realized she wasn't. "No." He looked at Sam for backup, but didn't receive any. "No," he repeated. "That is not happening. She is not coming with us," Dean announced. "Dean, we could use the help, besides-" Sam started to try to reason, but never got the chance to finish. "Besides nothing, Sammy. It's hard enough trying to save your sorry ass with Lucifer after it."

"Lucifer?" Cara asked shocked, but she was ignored.

"No one is asking you to save me, Dean," Sam interrupted him. "And I am perfectly capable of saving myself," Cara chimed in. "Oh, yeah, Carrot Top? Then why is it exactly that you were running from hunting?" Dean snapped at her. Cara's ears reddened in anger at the name. "Because everyone I ever cared about has been violently murdered in front of my eyes and I didn't want that to keep happening!" She shouted. Everyone fell silent then. "You know what, forget it. I'm going to go. Thank you for taking me in, but I can handle myself." With that Cara grabbed her bag and stormed out of the house, ignoring Sam's calls.


	4. The Hunt Begins

**14 Years Ago somewhere near Seattle, Washington **

_Cara took out her room key and unlocked the hotel room door. She wasn't supposed to leave, but the old rooms could get a bit stuffy. The room was still dark and empty. Her Aunt Rose hadn't come back yet. She was hunting a family of ghouls. Cara begged her to let her come, but her aunt wouldn't allow it. So, Cara was stuck watching shows that had terribly inaccurate depictions of the monsters she was used to seeing. "Not all vampires have Romanian accents," she mumbled and rolled her eyes at the old black and white movie._

_Cara looked at the clock that hung on the wall. It was past midnight. Her aunt should have been back by now. She took out the brown book her aunt had given her for her eleventh birthday. __**December 24, 1999 12:30 A.M- Aunt Rose isn't back yet. She promised she'd be back for Christmas, but I fear the worst. I told her it was stupid going after a whole family of ghouls on her own! If not me, she should've found some other hunter, but she's so stubborn. I'll update in the morning. **__She scribbled down on a blank page. She got on her pyjamas and put her red hair up in a ponytail._

_Cara curled up in the motel bed her aunt would have been sharing with her if she was back by now. She waited all night for her aunt to walk in and start talking about the hunt, but she never did._

**Present Day Sioux Falls, South Dakota**

Cara took another swig out of the cold bottle of beer. She didn't how she was going to pay for it or the previous three she drank. "You have a ride home, little lady?" the bartender asked. "Don't need one," she told him and took another swig. "Well, you know, my shift ends at eight-"

"Calm your horses, big guy. She's with us," another voice interrupted him. The two seats on either side of Cara that were perviously vacant now had two new occupants. Cara looked over to the side the voice came from only to see Dean. She gave him a confused look then looked the other way to be faced with Sam. "Is that so?" the bartender asked obviously skeptical. "Yeah," Cara confirmed. The bartender gave all three of them one last weird look before walking down the bar to speak to the other costumers.

"What do you guys want?" Cara questioned after another swig. Sam gave Dean a look when he failed to speak. "We," Sam gave him another look. "Okay,_ I_ wanted to know if you wanted to come with us and help and stuff," Dean told her. Cara eyed him then looked over at Sam. "You didn't have to make him do that." Dean made a noise. "Who said he made me do it?" He asked offended. Cara just gave him a look that said _come on._ "I need a beer," he mumbled and looked away. "So, what do you say?" Sam asked. Cara sighed and took another swig.

"I'm going to blame the beer for this, but fine - as long as Sunshine keeps his nose where it belongs." Sam smiled and Cara couldn't help but smile too. She brought the bottle back to her lips and took a swig in attempt to hide it.

"So, what's the first case?" Cara asked from the back seat of the impala. "Looks like vampires in Washington," Sam said as he read the obits from a newspaper. Cara's stomach tied in knots. Vampires have been the one thing to make her joints go stiff with terror since she was ten. Throw Washington into the mix and you've basically rendered her emotionally unstable and completely useless during a hunt. _No, I am not letting this get the better of me. I have to just ignore whatever it is I feel_, she told herself.

"Sounds good. How many dead?" She asked, keeping her voice nonchalant. "Uh, looks like five people were found with their throats ripped out over the past week: three women and two men." _Now this is just cruel_, she thought. She watched the blur of trees as they drove by. Overcast covered the sky. She kept trying to think of ways she could get through this hunt without having a breakdown.

Her heart beat erratically in her chest. They were in the nest. It was an extremely small nest of vamps, only five lived here. Cara had a needle full of dead man's blood and a machete, but she was still terrified. She, Sam, and Dean split up in order to try to take them out faster. She wished they didn't. She would've taken Dean over being alone right now. She tried to calm her shaky breathing. She stopped at the corner of the hall. Once she turned she'd be in the dimly lit living room and she wasn't sure she was ready for that yet.

Pushing down her anxieties, Cara grabbed her dead man's blood from her pocket and tightened the grip on her machete. Without thinking about it she rounded the corner ready to start stabbing and slicing only to be faced with Sam and Dean coming in from different ways in the same manner. "We've covered every inch of this place and haven't seen one vamp," Dean said annoyed. Before Cara could say anything she was pulled back harshly. One minute Sam and Dean were calling her name and the next darkness.


	5. The Last Room

The room she was in was very dimly lit. Her wrists and ankles were tied down to the extremely lumpy mattress she was on. There was a tube coming out of her arm and going into a bag. They had started draining her of blood. _Where the hell are Sam and Dean?_ She looked around terrified. This is was her worst nightmare. _ Why is it always vampires? Why couldn't we have hunted a nice little vengeful spirit?_

Adrenaline pumped through her veins and she was close to tears. She closed her eyes and tried to calm herself best she could. Suddenly, there was a hand caressing her face. She yelped and her eyes snapped open in surprise. "Your little friends can't help you now," a silky voice told her. A pale face, a handsomely terrifying pale face hovered over hers. Cara felt like she was going to puke.

"First, we're going to drain your blood then turn you into one of us," the vampire smirked as he spoke. Pure terror filled Cara to the point where she couldn't even scream. She was lucky she could even breathe. "Yeah, not happening, buddy," a voice very familiar to Cara said. Both she and the vampire looked over surprised. Sam and Dean stood in the doorway, Dean just in front of Sam. Relief washed over Cara at the sight of the brothers. "How did you-" the vamp stopped when he saw the bloody machetes in their hands

The vampire jumped on Dean and knocked the huge knife out of his hands. "Dean!" Sam shouted. "I'm fine! Just get Cara," He ordered as he fought back. Sam quickly cut Cara's restraints and turned around to face Dean and the vampire struggling on the floor. With one swift movement from Sam the vampire's head was on the floor and its body fell limp on Dean. Sam turned back around. "Are you okay?" He asked worried. Cara couldn't find words so she hugged him. "Th-Thank you," she sobbed out. She didn't even realize she was crying until then. "It's okay, they're gone, you're alright," Sam cooed in attempt to calm her down. Dean shot him a questioning look as the girl cried on his shoulder. Sam sent one back that read _I don't know_.

When she managed to calm herself down, Cara followed Sam and Dean to the impala. It was dark and they were all exhausted. They climbed in and sped off in search of a cheap motel. They found one not too far away. "I'll go grab us a room," Dean told them as they grabbed the bags from the trunk. Then he disappeared into the office of the dingy motel. "Thank you for saving my ass," Cara said suddenly. Sam looked at her with concerned green eyes. "What happened back there?" He asked his voice filled with nothing but concern and worry. "I... Vampires aren't my favourite thing in the world," she supplied weakly.

"If there's anything going on or bothering you, I'm here to talk to," he let her know. Cara smiled weakly. It's been a long time since she's had someone to talk to, it scared her. "Thanks." Dean approached them with a stupid smirk on his face. "Got the room and a number," he said and held up the small piece of paper with a phone number scribbled on it triumphantly. "You only got one room?" Cara asked. "Yeah, why?"

"Dean, how many beds are in one room?"

"Two."

"And how many of us are there?"

Dean's mouth formed an 'o' as he realized his error. "Well, looks like you guys are bunking together because I ain't sharing." Dean then grabbed his bag from Sam and led them to their room. "Why can't you just go get another room?" Cara questioned when they got to the room. It had a terrible colour scheme of greens and two full sized beds with forest green comforters. "And ruin my chances with the girl at the front desk by making it look like I'm here with some other chick? No," he answered with finality to his voice. "I'll go with you and get another room," Sam offered. "Thank you," Cara said. She seemed to be thanking him a lot today, she noticed.

"What do you mean there aren't any rooms left?" Cara asked annoyed. "Well, we can only let you stay in a room that is vacant and there aren't any vacant rooms left," the girl at the front desk explained as if Cara were five. Cara groaned. "Thanks for nothing," she mumbled to the girl before turning on her heel and leaving the office. "Oh well, it's not like I haven't slept on a motel room floor before," she said more to herself. She had almost forgotten Sam was next to her until he spoke. "You can share my bed," he offered. Then he realized what he has just offered and a light pink crept up on his cheeks. "Not to-uh-suggest anything," he assured her. "I just mean, you know, so you don't have to sleep on the floor," he continued babbling. It was strange, to Cara, seeing such a giant of a man babble like a school girl because he had made himself nervous.

"Do you promise to stay on one side and I'll stay on the other?" she asked as they reached the door to their room. "Of course, we won't even touch," he promised. She nodded in agreement and knocked on the door. Dean had already changed into his pyjamas when he opened the door. "You didn't get a room?" he asked when he saw she wasn't holding a key. "This was their last one," Sam told him. Cara grabbed her bag and went into the bathroom. She got changed into a simple pair of grey sweatpants and a baggy purple shirt. She tied her long orange-red hair up in a pony tail and left the bathroom.

Sam went into the bathroom to get changed after she got out. Cara flopped down on the bed. It was firm, but comfortable. She crawled under the covers and stayed as far to one side as she possibly could without being at risk for falling off the bed. She stayed on the side near Dean's bed since it was also the side closest to the door. She kept her back towards Sam's side so she didn't see him get into bed she just felt the mattress lower under the new bodyweight.

"I'm telling you right now, Winchester, if you touch me in any way you will be salted and burned before you can say 'exorcism'," Cara threatened him seriously. "Scout's honour," he said trying to hide the fact that she did intimidate him. It didn't work very well.


	6. Author's Note

**ATTENTION:**

**I am going to be changing the story. I set it to the wrong time in the series. It will be basically the same, but it's going to be before Sam said yes to Lucifer and yada yada. I had like three different ideas in mind when I started this and I now decided on which one I'm going to do. So I'm going to be deleting the previous chapters shortly and changing them a bit so hopefully they aren't down long! Thank you so much for reading!**


	7. Hammer of the Gods Part One

Dean stifled a laugh as he took another picture. He woke up before both Cara and Sam only to see them in the most hilarious position. Their legs were tangled, one of Sam's arms was wrapped around Cara's neck so that his hand was back towards him, the other rested on her butt, his mouth hung open, and his hair was all over the place. Cara's arm was raised around Sam's head so half of it was lost behind him; she had her middle and ring fingers in her mouth. To Dean, nothing could be funnier at the moment.

Right when he was about to snap another picture his phone began to ring. "Shit," he mumbled as he fumbled to pick it up before the two could wake up. It was too late. "Hello?" He answered. "I think I found you another hunt," Bobby said from the other end. Before Dean could reply there was a muffled whack and a loud groan followed by a thud. "What the hell is going on over there?" Bobby asked. Dean tried not to laugh at the sight of his brother on the floor rubbing his head. "Nothing, I'll call you back," he said before hanging up. "Scout's honour, huh?" Cara growled. Sam looked like he just saw a clown thanks to the small red head's furious expression. Dean couldn't help his smile. "Whoa, whoa, according to the pictures on my phone you were all over him too," Dean defended his brother. "Pictures?" Cara fumed. Dean's smile widened and he waved his phone tauntingly.

Cara launched herself at Dean. For a small girl, she packed some strength. She held Dean down with her body and one hand on his face and reached for his phone, but he extended his arm. His hand was just out of her reach. Sam laughed at the two and snatched the phone from Dean's hand. Cara quickly got up and took it from him. She went into his pictures and saw he had taken quite a few. Sam looked at them from over her shoulder, which wasn't hard since she only reached just above his shoulders. "You suck your fingers?" Sam asked amused. "Shut up, it's a comfort mechanism," she defended quickly and deleted the pictures.

She tossed the phone back to Dean, grabbed her bag, and made a beeline for the bathroom. She got changed into her usual jeans and grey t-shirt. She pulled her on old leather jacket and let her hair out of its ponytail. It was wavy as usual and she didn't bother trying to change that. She opened the bathroom door and walked right into Sam's chest. "Sorry," they said at the same time. They both chuckled awkwardly and tried to side step each other. They side stepped the same way. They continued this little dance for a few moments before finally breaking the synchronization. Dean watched the whole thing amused. If he were to be completely honest, he thought it was pretty cute the way his brother went all innocent Catholic schoolgirl around Cara.

"So, you and Sammy got pretty comfortable last night," he teased. Cara's cheeks reddened. "Oh, shut up. We were sleeping, it couldn't be helped," she told him embarrassed. "That could have been helped," Dean argued lightly. Cara threw a pillow at the already dressed Winchester brother. It hit him right in the face, but did little to wipe away his amused smile that was beginning to irritate Cara further. Sam emerged from the bathroom fully dressed in his usual jeans and plaid. Cara couldn't help the small blush at the sight of him, especially since she thought he looked pretty damn cute in plaid. "So, Bobby found us another hunt?" Sam asked. "Looks that way."

* * *

It was dark and pouring buckets. Cara was almost convinced someone took the Atlantic Ocean and was dropping it on them. Visibility was almost zero and how Dean was still driving, she didn't know. He swerved sharply to avoid hitting a sign. "Dean, we should pull over," Cara told him from the back. "There's nowhere to pull over," he replied annoyed as he continued trying to see. Then there were lights in the distance. "Pull in there it looks like a motel," she pointed.

After running as fast as they could to grab their things, the three entered a very nice lobby. There was a bar and lounge. Cara read Elysian Fields Hotel from behind the front desk. "Nice digs for once," Dean said as they looked around. They walked up to the front desk soaking wet. A wormy looking guy in a velvet suit was typing a mile a minute behind it. Something about the place gave Cara an off feeling. "Busy night," Dean said to get the guy's attention. "Any port in a storm, I guess," he answered and stopped typing. "If you could just fill these out please," the guy slid a form to Dean.

"Sir, I think you have a little shaving knick," the man told Dean and pulled a tissue from behind the desk and gave it to him. Cara noticed what he was talking about. There was a small cut at the beginning of Dean's jawline, but Cara couldn't remember him shaving anytime recent enough for him to be bleeding still. The uneasy feeling in Cara's stomach deepened. "Your key," the man handed Dean the key. "Oh, thanks. You wouldn't happen to have a coffee shop, would you?" Dean asked holding the tissue to his small cut. "Buffet, all you can eat," the man told them. Cara couldn't help her stomach's growl. She hadn't eaten since lunch and even that was just a small bag of sour cream and onion chips. "Best pie in the tri-state area," he added. If Sam wasn't filled with uneasiness thanks to this place he would've laughed at the matching excitement that lit in Dean and Cara's eyes at the mention of pie. A smile did slip through though.

Cara forgot all about her previous discomfort when she saw the selection of pies this place had. Her mom used to make her the best pie in the world, nothing she tasted since compared. She grabbed a slice of apple, her favourite, and sat across from Sam who had a plate of food and a drink. Dean was hitting on some girl, not surprising at all to Sam and Cara. When rejected, Dean joined them. "Sam, unpucker, man, eat something," Dean said to Sam who was doing something on his phone. Cara was lost in her pie. It wasn't as good as her mother's, but it sure as hell was good. "We should hit the road," Sam answered. Cara looked at him curiously.

"What, in this storm? It's-" "Biblical, exactly. It's freakin' Noah's Arc out there and we're eating pie," Sam interrupted Dean. Cara knew he had a point and she was pulled from her pie dream state. The uneasy knot reformed in her stomach and she suddenly wasn't all that hungry anymore. "How many hours of sleep have you got this week? Three, four?" Dean challenged. "And I assume you agree with your boyfriend over here?" He added towards Cara. She choked on her pie and quickly grabbed her cup of water to wash the apple pie down; unfortunately the water did nothing for her red cheeks. "Excuse me?" Was all she could manage awkwardly. Dean gave her an amused look. He loved getting a reaction out of the two.

"Bobby's got his feelers out, okay? We have talked to every hoodoo man and woman in twelve states," Dean said to Sam, his cheeks were pink as well. "I'm not giving up," Sam affirmed. Cara watched the two confused. "Nobody's giving up," Dean asserted. "Especially not me," he added in a softer tone. "We will find a way to beat the devil, okay? Soon, I can feel it. And we will find Cas, we will find Adam, but you are no good to me burned out." Cara was completely lost. Beat the devil? Who the heck are Cas and Adam? "Yeah. Yeah, got it," Sam said after a moment. "I'm sorry, I'm still playing catch up. What's going on exactly?" Cara asked. The brothers had almost forgotten she was there. Sam refused to make eye contact with her. "Long story short, we let Lucifer out of the box and now he wants Sammy," Dean explained. Cara's eyes widened in shock.

Cara felt incredibly selfish. Sam was offering her someone to talk to, a place to vent out her problems and worries yet she never did the same. She never even thought that he could be having problems of his own and she wanted to kick herself for it. She hated how he wouldn't look directly at her, like he was ashamed. "Why does he want you?" She asked him. "I'm his vessel," he answered with a hollow voice. He hated telling her this, he absolutely hated it. Cara's face went from worried to determined. "I'll do everything I can to help beat him," she told him. He met her eyes, green locked with blue. "Thank you."

"Come on, we have a night off for once let's try to enjoy it and not talk about all this depressing crap," Dean said and took another bite of his pie, Cara did the same.

* * *

The three found their room door. A couple doors down a couple were making out and it was getting pretty heated which caused a small giggle to slip out of Cara. Dean nudged Sam and smiled as he nodded towards the two. "Oh, what are you, twelve?" Sam asked, but even he was amused. "Yeah, I am at heart," Dean shrugged and unlocked the door. Dean let out a whistle as they walked in. Cara couldn't blame him. The room was nice. Dean put his bag down on one of the two red blanketed beds. Cara didn't even bother pointing out that he had once again only gotten one room. "Look at this, we're like Rockefellers!" Dean sounded like a five year old on Christmas. He picked up a small piece of chocolate that was on the pillow. Cara still felt extremely uneasy and one look at Sam told her he felt the same. "You gonna have yours?" Dean asked. "Knock yourself out," Sam told him and Dean took his chocolate as well.

"Whoa, Casa Erotica 3 _on demand_," Dean held up the sign for it and looked a bit too excited. "But you two probably won't be needing that," he added. They both sent him glares with red cheeks. Dean loved it. It was the funniest thing to him. "What?" Dean asked when he saw Sam's stiff facial expression. "We're in the middle of nowhere," Sam pointed out.

"So?"

"So, what's a four star hotel doing on a no star highway?"

Dean just made a face that said "don't know, don't care." Then the couple in the room beside them could be heard obviously about to get it on. Dean giggled, Sam let out a single chuckle, and Cara couldn't help her chuckle. Suddenly there were two bangs everything hanging on the walls shook and almost fell. They all exchange surprised looks before rushing to the room. The room was empty and dark. The only indication that someone had been in there was the unmade bed. "Hello?" Dean called. No answer. "Hello?" Sam called this time as they walked around the room. Again, no answer. Then Dean bent down and picked something up. An engagement ring. "We should probably bring that to the front desk," Cara spoke up.

* * *

"The-uh-the room next to ours, the couple that were-uh-joined at the lips, have you seen them?" Dean asked the wormy guy that worked the front desk. "Mister and Missus Logan, the honeymooners," the man said. He typed something into his computer before simply stating "They checked out." Cara thought this a bit fishy. "Is something the matter?" The guy asked. "They checked out?" Sam repeated obviously not believing it. "Mhm, just now," the man assured with a creepy smile. "It sorta seemed like they were in the middle of something," Sam told the guy. He just shrugged. "Yeah, it's sorta weird for honeymooners to check out without this." Dean held up the ring. "Oh dear, I'll just put that in the lost and found," the guy took the ring from Dean. "Don't you worry," he assured them. "Is there anything else I can help you with?" Something about this guy just didn't sit well with Cara at all. "No, we're good," she said. "Super fantastic."

"Creepy," Sam commented when they turned and began walking away. "Broke the needle," Dean agreed. "All right, well I'll scope out the place while you keep an eye on Norman Bates over here," Dean immediately took charge. Sam and Cara nodded. "And don't get distracted," he added with a wiggle of his eyebrows. Cara wanted to punch him, but he walked away too fast.

Sam and Cara followed Wormy through the hotel. They followed him around a corner only he wasn't there. It was just a dead end with a soda machine. "I don't understand, he went this way," Cara said as they looked around. Suddenly there was a stinging sensation just under Cara's jaw. She instinctively put her hand there. When she pulled away there was blood on her fingers. "You too?" Sam asked. She nodded. "There's definitely something not right about this place," she stated the obvious, Sam nodded in agreement. They headed back to find Dean.

"How are you doing?" Cara asked suddenly. "With this whole Lucifer thing," she clarified. Sam looked a bit uncomfortable and she instantly regretted asking. "How well can you do when Lucifer trying to use you as a meat suit?" He asked rhetorically. She nodded understanding. "I'm always here, you know if you ever need to talk," she told him, her cheeks burning with embarrassment. He nodded and said thanks. Cara couldn't figure out why she was being so awkward. "What were they like?" Sam asked, breaking the silence that formed between them. Cara gave him a confused look. "Your family," he elaborated. He could see her facial features darken. "If you don't want to talk about it I understand. It's just you've met Dean and Bobby, they're really all I have and I was curious," he babbled. "It's alright," she assured him with an amused smile. She loved how he babbled like that.

"I was pretty much the only one in my family that didn't love hunting. My parents took my brother and me hunting all the time. My sisters were older so they never came with us, but they went off on their own. My dad was a hard ass, but my mom was great, super religious. I never got that. My brother was my best friend; he was my only friend really. My sisters were absolutely gorgeous and really smart," Sam noticed the slight jealousy in her voice as she talked about her sisters, "My mom used to make me apple pie all the time because it's my favourite. No one makes pie better than she did," she told him; there was a slight longing in her voice. Her throat was dry from talking, but what surprised her most was that Sam was actually listening. He actually seemed to care, like he just genuinely wanted to know, so she continued. "When they died I lived with my aunt. We traveled around, following hunts. She barely ever let me go with her on them, though. One day she went out on a hunt and never came back," Cara finished off with a shrug.

"I'm sorry."

"Me too."

Then they bumped into Dean. "You will not believe what I just saw."


End file.
